Welke Taal Spreek je?...Bluffing

I could pass as a local in most western European countries. I think that's half the problem with the surprised reaction I get when trying to speak Dutch. If I looked a bit foreign then I think people wouldn't be as startled by my indecipherable Dutch. It's only when I return to England that I realise how small talk fills up much of one's day. In Belgium I actively avoid it. The slightest attempt at small talk leaves me tongue-tied after a few words and the person I talk to open-mouthed. I once found myself in a three way conversation at a party and managed to bluff my way through 20 minutes of nodding, smiling and laughing in the right places; it was only when I was asked a direct question that I had to admit to not understanding a word the guy had spoken. I don't know who felt more embarrassed, him or me, but to his credit he just said that he thought I was a bit quiet! I regularly pass an old chap riding his bike when I walk past one of the local farms. He always has something to say to me but I have no idea what it is. The thing is that he never stops pedalling so I respond to him with something that sounds like real words but actually isn't because he doesn't really care what I say, just that I have responded in a tone of voice that he expects to hear from me. Of course there is a chance he is doing exactly the same thing as I am...let's not go down that road.